Mine exploder



Dec. 7, 1948. 1-1. T. WOOLSON MINE EXPLODER 2 Sheefs-Sheet 1 Filed July E5, 1945 INVENTOR. mam "r. WOOLSON 5 Y m mm ATTORNEYS Dec. 7-, 1948. y H. T. WOOLSON 2,455,636

MINE EXPLODER 4 V Filed July 5, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

,HARRY T. WOOLSON- Y 6.3MF7fZM ATTORNEYS Patented Decl 7, 1948 l MINE EXPLODER {Ha-rry T. Woolson, Detroit; Mich-, assignor to ChryslerOorpdraition, Highland Park, Mich, a licorp'oration of Delaware Application idly V3, 1945, Serial No. "602,972

' i This invention relates-generally to mine exploders and more'parti'cularlyto mine exploders .for use in connection with vehicles.

In modern military operations, mine fields containing anti-personnel and anti-tank mines are often placed in'the path ofv advancing armies. A path must be cleared through these mine fields tov'permit the safe movement of tanks and in- Iantrytherethrough. One solution to this problem is to equip a ltankwvithfa mine exploding de-.

rvice located in "rrbnt or the tank and, shaving ground-engaging wheels; dfsuch size and, weight that they will explode any mine Dyer which-they pass. Difficultiesencountered with mine exploders .of "this typelfincludelack ,oi.maneuverability I e Glaims.

. v 2 Fig. 1 is a side elevation of-the mine exploder attached-00a military tank; Y

'' Fig. 2 isa plan viewthereof;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially the plane indicated by "the line 3 3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a 'crosssectional view taken substantiaily 0n theplan'e indicated "by the line 4- 4 of 'Figlfi through-one of the arms, and V "Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially-on theplane -indicated by the line 5-5 of and the problem of suspending the wheels so that irregular ,ground areas "may be adequately covered and an mines. exploded; and the .m'inelbla'st .efiectively absorbed withoiiticausing .ser'ious' damage to the mine exploder or thetank. v

. These disadvantages are efiectively overcome by the presentiinventionin which a plurality of torsion mountedwh eels are; independently suspended from .a. framelocatedlin front of the tank, .the Lframe being pivotally connected to a boom extending-forwardly irom the tank and operating" to, in effect, tow theimine explo'der' froma pivot located in front of. the mine .exploder -substantially on thelongitudinal centerline of thetank. l .'I

lItis, therefore, an object oflthe present invention to provide a mine expldder' located in .iront .of av'ehicie andpivotally connected to ameinber extending forwardly iroihthelvehicle. A flunther object is to locate the pivot substantially 'onjthe longitudinal centerlineof the vehicle and ahead of .theYa'xe-s =.of mine exploding wheels carried by the mine exploder. This! arrangement materially increases the maneuverability of theve'hicle when propelling themineiez plo der. a Y

Another object of the invention-is t provide aminetexploder having ground engaging wheels torsionally suspended from the frametof'rthe mine explocler.

A further object of the invention is tolproviide I v a, mineexploder having vinizlependently. mounted vg'roundlengaging wheelsadapted to follow the terrain and to explode .mines inferv which [they pass,v and designed to absorbimine blasts without being seriouslyidamaged. h f

Other objects and advantages ,oi: the I present intention will betmade moretapparent asmthis descriptionfgproceeds particularly: when --considered in -connection W the :accompaxiyingdraw- "ingainwlhichvm, i 7' 1 i :Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the reference character 1'0 indicates a mili- "tary combat tank having tracks 11, a hull I2, "and a turret l3 carrying a gun l4. Extending forwardly from the front ofth'e tank is a boom 1'5; comprising a pair of converging .arms lfi'hav- 'ing their forward ends joined by a bracket I! and their rearward portions pivotally mounted upon stub axles l8 extending from opposite'sides ofthe hull 12 of the tank. A reinforcing member I9 interconnects the arms N5 of the boom. The arms [6 extend rearwardly of the. stub axles I8 and are provided with arcuate slots 20 adapted to engagegsuitableystops 21 provided on the sides of the hull to limit the pivotal movement of the'boom. The boom i5 is thus free .to pivot about. axles [8 within predetermined limits to enable the mine exploder totraverse rough and rolling terrain.

The forward end of bracket I! of the boom is provided with a tapered {aperture '22 adapted to receive the tapered s hank 23 of a ball joint '24, A nut 25 locks the ball joint 24 to bracket H. The lower portion of the .ball joint is formed as a hemispherical ball 26 which is adapted to be received within a complementary shaped socket r2?! carried upon the forward edge of the mine exploder frame 28.

a Frame 28 extends transversely the entire width ,or the tank'and has front and rear sections 3! and 31 respectively, and side sections 32. The Lframe 28 tmay be castii n one pieceof armor plate )material r may be fabricated .as desired.

l Bolted .tothe central portion of .thefront seci tion 3B \of'therframe is arbracket .33 having formed integrally therewith the socket 2! previously mentioned. it will readily be apparent that thethemispherical ball 2-6 carried by the boom and' the socket 27 carried b :the mine exploder 'frame cotoperate to .form a universal coupling permitting l universal movement between theboom and frame. v Downward. movement of frame 28 is limited by means of a painofflexible cables '34 having opposite ends pivotally connected to brackets 35 and 36 provided upon the rear section 3| of the frame and the arms l6 of the boom respectively.

Disposed within the frame 28 are a plurality of transversely spaced independently suspended mine exploding wheels 31 each rotatably mounted in an arm 38 which in turn is pivotally connected to a bracket 39 bolted to the front section 30 of the mine exploder frame by means of bolts 48. The brackets 39 are uniformly spaced across the entire width of the front section 3|] of the frame. Inasmuch as the structure for independently suspending each roller 31 is identical, only one will be described in detail.

Each bracket 39 is provided with a circular bore 4| receiving an annular torsion rubber bushing 42 which is suitably bonded to the bracket. Coaxial with aperture 4| and the annular bushing 42 is a hollow stub axle 43 having its outer peripheral surface bonded to the inner surface of the rubber bushing. Thus axle 43 is torsionally mounted within the bracket for pivotal move ment. 7

The arm 38 comprises a pair of side plates 44 spaced apart a predetermined distance and having their rearward ends connected by a crossmember 45. The forward ends of plates 44 have aligned circular apertures 46 engaging the opposite ends of axle .43 and suitably secured thereto,

as for example by welding. At substantially their mid-points the side plates 44 are provided with aligned apertures 41 receiving the opposite ends of an axle 48 rotatably mounted therein. The mine exploding wheel 31 is carried by axle 48 intermediate the side plates 44 of arm. 38, being spaced therefrom by annular spacers 49.

The forward ends of the side plates 44 of arm 38 are provided with stops 50 adapted to engage the inner surface of the front section 39 of the frame 28 to limit the downward pivotal movement of wheel 37 and arm 38 relative to the frame. Upward pivotal movement of the arm relative to the frame is limited by engagement of member 45 of the arm with a resilient pad 52 carried by the rear section 3| of theframe.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that each wheel-carrying arm 38 is independently pivotally connected to the front section of the mine exploder frame by means of a torsion bushing.

The weight of frame 29 and boom I5 are transmitted through the torsion bushings 42'to the ground engaging wheels 31, and since the frame and boom are relatively heavy, it will be seen that each wheel 31' exerts a considerable pressure upon the ground. The mine exploder is designed so that this pressure will be suificient to explode any mine located in the ground.

I Since the wheels 37 are independently suspended each maintains engagement with the ground regardless of the irregularity of the terrain. The frame 28 extends the entire width of the tank andthe wheels 31 are positioned close enough together so that all mines in the path of the tank are exploded. All of the exposed parts of the mine exploder, including wheels 31, arms 38, and frame 28, are constructed of armor-plate material and are of sufficient mass and strength to resist the blast of exploding mines without being seriously damaged. 'The resiliency of the entire mineexploder construction also contributes to theavoidance of damage by effectively absorbing the blast. Another factor contributing to the elimination of damage is the fact that arms 38 are closely adjacent each other and are inclosed by frame 28, thus-enabling them 0 G0- operate with each other and with the frame in resisting the transverse force exerted upon wheels 31 by the blast of an exploding mine.

In addition to proper coverage of irregular terrain by the independent suspension of the wheels 31, the pivotal mounting of boom [5 upon axles i8 permits the entire mine exploder to automatically follow an inclined slope or hill.

The present invention provides maneuverability heretofore unobtainable when mine exploders were attached to tanks or other vehicles. This is accomplished by the universal pivotal connection provided between boom l5 and frame consisting of ball 26 and socket 21. connection is located at the extreme forward edge This universal more, the entire construction is relatively low,

providing an unobstructed field of vision for the tank driver.

Although I have shown and described certain embodiments of the invention,.it will be understood that I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departin from the spirit and scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A mine exploder comprising a boom member, means for pivotally mounting said boom member at a rearward portion thereof to a forward part of a vehicle, a hollow frame located beneath said boom member and including front, rear and side sections, universal coupling means pivotally connecting said frame at said front section thereof to the forward end of said boom member, means between said rear section of said frame and said boom member for limiting downward movement of said frame, a plurality of arms extending longitudinally of said frame beneath the latter, said arms being spaced transversely of said frame, each of said arms .beingindependently pivotally connected at the forward end thereof to said front section of said frame, and a plurality of independently suspended .mine exploding wheels spaced transversely of said frame, each of said wheels being independently and rotatably mounted in one of said arms rearwardly of the pivotal connection of said arm to said frame.

2, The mine exploder of claim 1, wherein said boom member comprises a pair of boom arms converging and joined by bracket means at their forward ends and adapted at their rearward portions for limited pivotal mounting to each side of the forward part of a vehicle.

3. The mine exploder of claim 1, wherein said means between said rear section of said frame and said boom member for limiting downward movement of said frame comprises a flexible cable having its opposite'ends pivotally connected to said rear section of said frame andto said boom member, respectively.

4. A mine exploder comprising a boom member, means for pivotally mounting said .boom member at a rearward portion thereof to a forward part of a vehicle, a frame located beneath said boom member, said frame including front, rear and side sections, means pivotally connecting said frame at a point on said front section thereof to the forward end of said boom member, means between said rear section of said frame and said boom member for limiting downward movement of said frame, a plurality of arms extending longitudinally of said frame beneath the latter, said arms being spaced transversely of said'frame, each of said arms being independently pivotally connected at the forward end thereof through a resilient torsion bushing to said front section of said frame, and a plurality of independently suspended ground engaging wheels spaced transversely of said frame, each of said wheels being independently and rotatably mounted in one of said arms rearwardly of the pivotal connection of said arm to said frame.

5. A mine explodercornprising a boom member, means for pivotally mounting said boom 'memberat a rearward portion thereof to a forward part of a vehicle, a frame located beneath said boom'inember, said frame including front, rear and {side sections, means universally connecting said frame at a point on said front section thereof to the forward end of said boom member, means between said rear section of said frame and said boom member for limiting downward movement of said frame, a plurality of arms extending longitudinally of said frame beneath the latter, said arms being spaced transversely of said frame, means for independently pivotally connecting each of said arms at the forward end thereof through a resilient torsion bushing to said front section of said frame, a plurality of independently suspended ground engaging wheels spaced transversely of said frame, each of said Wheels being independently and rotatably mounted in one of said arms rearwardly of the pivotal connection of said arm to said frame, and means carried by said frame cooperating with the rearward ends of said arms to limit upward movement thereof.

6. The mine exploder of claim 5 in which said means cooperating with the rearward ends of said arms comprises a resilient pad carried by said rear section of said frame.

HARRY T. WOOLSON.

REFERENCES CITEDv The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,190,257 Henderson July 4, 1916 2,270,390 Summers Jan. 20, 1942 2,287,723 Boyd et al. June 23, 1942 OTHER REFERENCES Popular Mechanics, Sept. 1944, page 6. 

